BASIL SYLVESTER PINTO
PANAJI
The governing body for cricket in the country, BCCI, has taken a decision to re-introduce organising Ranji Trophy matches in the forthcoming season at neutral venues; a stance which did not find favour with batting legend Sachin Tendulkar some years ago.
The Goan Everyday asked past and present Goa Ranji cricketers on their take on this matter. Even in the Goan cricket fraternity the opinion on the matter is divided.
Former Goa Ranji cricketer Prashant Kakode opines that there are ifs and buts for a defining decision as this. “Last season, Saurashtra had prepared doctored wickets to suit them which resulted in matches going their way within two or two-and-a-half days as other State teams suffered. The BCCI Technical Committee’s decision to hold matches at neutral venues may be experimental for at least this season. If it will continue, only time would tell,” Kakode, the manager “ cricket operations at Goa Cricket Association said.
“When Goa is playing at home, the media will be enthused to come and cover the match. What happens if Chattisgarh and Tripura are pitted against each other in a match at Porvorim? At best, they will get a small column coverage. But if Tamil Nadu and Mumbai were to play, the situation would be a lot different,” Kakode pointed out. “You cannot say if it is a good or bad decision. From a cricketing point of view, playing at home and preparing pitches that favour you, should not happen. Hence, the stance taken to play all Ranji matches at neutral venues was to prevent any complaints henceforth. While that may be right, on the other hand, spectator interest and coverage would get affected if the home team does not play, or Ranji sides sans any star cricketers play at Porvorim,” he concurred.
Another former Goa Ranji player Namdev Phadte was firmly against the decision. “I do not favour neutral venues as our budding cricketers would not go outside the State to see their own home-grown heroes like Swapnil Asnodkar, Shadab Jakati in action,” Phadte said. “Besides, Goa being in the ‘C’ division, and with neutral venues enforced for all Ranji matches this season, I do not see top-tier teams come to Goa to play,” Phadte, who is the president of Goa Ex Ranji Players Association (GERPA), said.
Meanwhile, the swashbuckling Goa Ranji opener Swapnil Asnodkar says that playing on a neutral venue would be a good challenge. “Earlier we used to play four away games. Now it will be eight or nine which is a good sign. It will be a challenge to all the players to play outside their home comfort," the diminutive run-machine told this paper. “Earlier, playing on home conditions, we had a chance to look at the wicket and accordingly prepare ourselves. But now, we will only have a look at the surface just prior to the game. The wicket would not be prepared the way we want, but the way the curator wants,” the former IPL star sated.
Sagun Kamat, a key top-order batsman, like Asnodkar finds that playing at neutral venues is a good call. “You get more opportunities playing on neutral venues and who knows the conditions may be familiar to us and it might work to our advantage. You never know what wicket you may get,” stated the senior batsman. “If say, fast bowling is our strength with Harshad Gadekar (a key pacer returning from injury), Saurabh Bandekar and hopefully, Rituraj Singh, as a professional signing, things could look up with the seam attack looking potent. The more games you play to win; the better would be our chances to reach the elite,” Kamat stated.
Kamat also shed light on the significant BCCI meet held on June 23 at Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh. “I was sent there by the GCA as representative (in captain Dheeraj Jadhav’s absence) of the Goa Ranji side to attend an important meeting. Over there, Sourav Ganguly (Head of the BCCI Technical Committee) had stressed on neutral venues if India were to be competent on bouncy tracks overseas. This coming in the aftermath of the earlier season, where wickets were doctored to the blasphemous extent that Saurashtra were winning matches within a day-and-a-half with batsmen finding it very difficult to cope with the nature of the wicket,” Kamat revealed.
“Besides, the neutral venues having a green tinge would help produce Indian players adapt to handle the bounce which they find when they travel overseas to countries like Australia and South Africa,” he added.
Saurabh Bandekar, the lively Goa all-rounder, also opined that a decision to have matches at neutral venues was a good one. “There have been a lot of instances wherein home teams have used the conditions in a bad way,” the former India U-19 World Cupper stated. “Moreover, with a neutral venue, teams would not have an edge over conditions, apart from the cricketing point of view, when one could be better than the other on paper,” he added.
